Rick Chyme

Who knew a slice of cold pizza could be so rewarding? Usually at its most appetizing while piping hot, the dish was reduced to stiff, saucy bread with a rubbery-like top layer. Hip-hop star Rick Chyme didn’t care, though. The Grand Rapids, MI native wanted that slice desperately, regardless of its current condition. An astounded audience erupted into ovation while also bombarding him with mass congratulatory admiration. It was like the scene of a bleacher-clearing last second score to win a noteworthy sports championship. Genuinely thankful and wholeheartedly appreciative with every step he took, Chyme pushed his way through for nourishment.
There was good reason for the crowd’s cheers and Chyme’s open-to-anything appetite. The Lyrist of the Year award-winner had just spent 17 hours free-styling continuously in an attempt to break a much-heralded Guinness world record. This incredible feat took place during the 2013 ArtPrize event, a 19 days-long independently organized international art competition with a $200,000 top prize. The winner is decided entirely by public vote. For Chyme, unity was more significant than ballot tallies or a world record certificate. “It wasn’t that important to me to break the record,” he admits. “What was most important was bringing people together, collaborating with those I know and those I met during the freestyle. The mass amounts of people who were a part of the day as volunteers and collaborators was so inspiring.”
There was no anxiety over whether Chyme’s voice would remain strong to see this undertaking to completion. Leading up to the performance, he says he rapped for 6 hours and felt pretty good afterwards. Nearly one month before ArtPrize, Chyme performed two house shows in one day. “At the second show, I took requests after my set was finished,” he recalls. “This turned into me performing our song ‘1,000 Miles From No Where’ over about 30 times in addition to performing several other songs multiple times!” Once concluded he’d rapped nearly 7 hours. “Those instances let me know that my voice would last.”
Blessed with skill and proven ready, a 17 hour vocal marathon still required proper hydration. Chyme’s friend Christina of VLC Integrative Wellness tailor-made smoothies for the bearded wordsmith that gave him the nutrition needed to make it through. According to The Guinness Books rules, one can only take 3 second-long breaks, “so all food needed to be liquid,” Chyme says. Following this exercise, a slice of solid cold pizza rivals a four course meal. While performing Chyme fed mostly off the audience. “Mentally, all of the people I came into contact with kept my mind healthy. It was an unbelievable exchange of energy. Something I’ve never seen or experienced, ever.”
“People were moved by this,” Chyme continues. “People who didn’t even like hip-hop were touched. I had someone say after witnessing that they were going to stop smoking. Again, it was never about the record to begin with. My hope was that it will inspire some humans to use their imaginations, take some risks, and see what happens. Ideally, people will see that you can take an idea and build it into something tangible.”
Before Rick Chyme built his rhyme reputation, he was a standout basketball star in high school and college. Revered for an obvious hands-on approach to putting points on the board, Chyme’s time at Western University turned from courts to Def Jam Records. While there he did anything but sit the bench, becoming an Assistant Music Supervisor for mogul Jay-Z’s film Fade To Black. From this he learned more than a thing or two about engaging an audience.
Chyme got involved with ArtPrize because he says he wanted to enter a piece that took the people who have traditionally been spectators and turn them into collaborators. “The most impressive part of the contest, in my opinion, is the power that exists in all of the people who flood the city during the contest.”
In order to claim the ArtPrize trophy and Guinness record, substantial footage was needed of the entire performance. Unfortunately, some of the recording was corrupted due to “some technical difficulties along the way,” Chymes says. “It’s difficult to keep it all together technologically when you’re changing environments constantly. The good thing is that we were never very concerned with holding the record; we were more focused on bringing people together to share a moment, which we did. The energy being exchanged exceeded all of my expectations. Besides, we know that we did it!”
Sought after producer and fellow hip-hop star Nixon was one of the many “we” to witness Chyme go off the top of the head for 17 hours straight. A longtime collaborator responsible for production on Chyme’s current album The 5iveit LP had this to say: “I am proud of my friend, not even for the freestyle—there wasn’t a doubt in my mind about that he could do that. I’m proud because he motivated everyone who witnessed it and showed them you can do anything you put your mind to.”
Always thinking ahead, Rick Chyme is already putting his mind to how he will next contest the record, if he so chooses. “I’m willing to perform a 24 hour freestyle in a more controlled environment if someone would put up a solid amount of money for a charity.”
For more on Rick Chyme visit rickchyme.com and 5iveit.net, and follow him on Twitter @RickChyme.
- Mr. Joe Walker
“The Word Heavyweight Champion” Mr. Joe Walker, a senior contributor for SoulTrain.com, staff writer for Muskegon Tribune Newspaper, and feature writer for City Locs, is an award-winning entertainment and news journalist and columnist published thousands of times regionally, nationally, internationally, and online. Former Editor In Chief of XPOZ Magazine, his work has graced the pages and covers of Notion Magazine, Kalamazoo Gazette Newspaper, Real Detroit Weekly, and MLive.com. He loves to create, loves that you read. Follow him on Twitter @mrjoewalker, connect with him on Facebook, and also visit ByMrJoeWalker.blogspot.com. - Soultrain.com

Writer|Raphielle Johnson
In four seasons as a member of the Western Michigan basketball program, Pat Cleland played in 41 games and averaged less than a point per contest after originally joining the program as a manager. His name likely won’t be found on too many of the pages in the school’s record book, but Cleland may find himself in the Guinness Book of World Records at the end of the weekend.
Why? Cleland, a hip hop artist whose raps under the name of Rick Chyme, will attempt to break the world record for longest freestyle rap. With the current record being 16 hours, 31 minutes and 22 seconds (set in May), Rick Chyme aims to rap for 17 consecutive hours beginning at 8 a.m. Saturday morning. His attempt at making history will be part of ArtPrize 2013, an annual festival held in Grand Rapids, Mich. that aims to celebrate various forms of art.
Chyme, who lives in Grand Rapids, will begin his journey at John Hartman Photography on Division Avenue. He will rap about most anything almost continuously (he is allowed three-second breaks) as spectators shout out words or phrases, show him objects or send him tweets.
He plans to reach The Pyramid Scheme at midnight, where he will be joined by musicians for the final hour.
Per Guinness rules the longest he can pause during the attempt is three seconds, and given the need for fresh subject matter it’s probably a good idea to do this while walking the streets of Grand Rapids. The longest Rick Chyme’s gone in a practice session (not even sure how you can practice such a thing) is six hours, and if you can go that long what’s 11 more hours?
Obviously the goal of this exercise is to break a time record, but it would be interesting to see what kind of content Chyme comes up with during the freestyle. Will it all mesh together? Hopefully there’s someone along for the show who happens to jot down his words, because it would make for an interesting read. - NBC Sports